Wind power ruling against White House lacks force

Green jobs growth is rising as renewables, electrification grow, but green skills lagging

In today’s edition:

— Wind stocks rise after a federal judge ruled Trump’s order against offshore wind illegal

— Market for green jobs rises faster than development of candidates with actual green skills

— Alaskan Republican senators push back on Trump drilling plans

— France says tap water widely polluted with forever chemicals

— Humans and livestock make up 95% of the world’s mammal biomass

Shares of energy companies with large offshore wind assets ticked higher on Tuesday after a federal judge ruled that President Donald Trump’s executive order earlier this year to halt offshore wind projects was illegal. But a federal ruling that the president of the United States did something illegal isn’t what it used to be.

The White House can still appeal the ruling to a federal court of appeals and, if necessary, the U.S. Supreme Court — which has performed strikingly in its favor in recent rulings, and nothing in the existing ruling requires Trump to allow current blocked projects to restart.

If anything, it might prevent him from halting more projects, at least for the time being. Still, shares of wind companies such as Orsted (DK:ORSTED) and Vestas Wind Systems (DK:VWS) — two of Europe’s largest wind turbine manufacturers and wind energy developers — rose in trading in Denmark after the ruling. Stock in GE Vernova GEV 0.00%↑, which also makes turbines, was up more than 2% on Wall Street, though that in part is ahead of an investor day meeting this evening.

The weakness of the ruling is emblematic of a justice system in the U.S. that has become corrupted by the current administration, which freely does what it wants and barely stops even after lawsuits lead to rulings against it. Trump’s America, for now, is still a tough place for wind investors.

The good news is that as the rulings stack up, the case for more energy from any type of developer also grows as the need for AI data centers continues to surge. At some point, we expect, demand for energy will cause the White House to ultimately let some wind projects through despite the rhetoric.

For wind investors, that for now is good enough. . . .

If you have ideas or suggestions for us, contact me directly at
dcallaway@callawayclimateinsights.com.

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Wanted: Nuclear industry jobs pace rise in green employment growth